The ECOWAS Technical Committee for the Harmonization of ICT Standards (THC 09) Working Group 1 (THC 09/GT1) on Information Security met in a workshop on June 17, 2022 by video conference.

The meeting was attended by almost all the member countries of THC 09.

The following countries participated in the meeting

Benin
Burkina-Faso
Cape Verde
Cote d'Ivoire
Gambia
Ghana
Guinea Bissau
Senegal
Togo
The objectives of the workshop were to :

- To convene and install the THC 09/GT1 working group on information security

- To present and discuss the draft standards retained by the THC 09 on information security

- To collect the views and comments of THC 09/GT1 members on these draft standards and to find a consensus on their adoption;

The opening of the meeting was marked by a welcome message to the various participants representing the member states of THC 09. This was followed by words of thanks addressed to all participants by the Chairman of THC 09, Mr. Georges P. LALLOGO who had to express again his thanks to the ECOWAS Commission, to UNIDO while addressing his congratulations to the new representatives designated by their countries to take part in the work of THC 09.

He urged the members to actively engage in the work to achieve the objectives in the best conditions. In this regard, he sent a message to the Commission and UNIDO to spare no effort to allow the holding of physical meetings.

Mr. MEHEFOLO Kamara, on behalf of Mr. AKA Jean Joseph KOUASSI, Senior Technical Advisor representing UNIDO, recalled that within the framework of the WACQIP project (West Africa Competitiveness and Quality Infrastructure Project), which is the regional component of the West Africa Competitiveness Program WACOMP, the list of standards that have been retained were validated during a TMC/ECOSHAM meeting and proposed to the concerned TCHs for harmonization. After commending the commitment of the members of the THC 09 to continue the work, he expressed the readiness of UNIDO to support and accompany the Commission for the harmonization of standards in our community.

Dr Ajoku, on behalf of the Commissioner of the Industry and Private Sector Promotion Department of ECOWAS, Mr Mamadou TRAORE, thanked all the members of THC 09 for attending this meeting of the THC 09/GT1 working group on information security. He recalled the objective of the meeting as well as its importance in the framework of the harmonization of standards in the ECOWAS space which allows to facilitate trade between Member States and to ensure the competitiveness of products and services in our community space and on the international market.

He then wished a good progress of the work before declaring the workshop officially opened.

The agenda of the meeting was presented by the Chairman of THC 09 and submitted to the participants for their comments and adoption.

The following institutions also took part in the meeting

ECOWAS Commission
UNIDO
The following draft standards were presented by the THC 09 Secretary:

ISO/IEC 27000:2018 - Information technology - Security techniques - Information security management systems - Overview and vocabulary

ISO/IEC 27001:2013 - Information technology - Security techniques - Information security management systems - Requirements

ISO/IEC 27002:2013 - Information technology - Security techniques - Code of practice for information security management

ISO/IEC 27003:2017 - Information technology - Security techniques - Information security management systems - Guidelines

ISO/IEC 27004:2016 - Information technology - Security techniques - Information security management - Monitoring, measurement, analysis and evaluation

The meeting participants made the following recommendations:

Validate the adoption of ISO/IEC 27002:2022 and not the 2013 edition
Consolidate the remaining WG meetings into a single session, as all THC 09 members have a clear interest in the different topics addressed by the working groups
To follow the evolution of the ISO/IEC 27001 standard under revision and to share with the THC 09 members the latest version of the draft (FDIS)
 Hold in a single session, the meetings of WG 2, WG 3 and WG 4 on July 07, 2022 for more efficiency
The Chairman of THC 09 thanked all the members of THC 09 for their active participation in the meeting while welcoming the level of progress of the work.